Trustfire Battery Issue

[Racona Nova]

Replaced my TrustFire chargers from US with an XTAR VP4 4-cell Li-Ion charger because the TFs made really high-pitched buzzing sounds for months now and it became annoying the last few days. Works like a charm, I can really recommend it!

[Racona Nova]

Update: I noticed that one of my cells got unbearable hot, that didn't happen in my old chargers AFAIK. I've set the charging current to 0.25A (the lowest possible), and still get that problem. Also, the flashing battery symbol in the display doesn't stop even after about half an hour - and the battery voltage was around 4 V right after putting it into the charger, so it should not take that long Any suggestions? I almost think that the cell if defective...

[JEStucker]

UPDATE:

The DE (DEWORLD?) 14500 cells, DO NOT FIT.

They are too long for the battery holders inside your UltraSaber...  Live and learn I guess.  May see if I can make a minor modification or something, but they don't fit the factory holder.

Do not buy these from Radio Shack if you plan on using them in an UltraSaber.

[Kouri]

Crud, I had nabbed a set without checking if they'd fit into a standard AA battery holder.

Unwrapped to investigate - the protection circuit makes 'em too big. Without it, it looks like they'd *just* fit.

On the one hand, unprotected cells should bump up the possible output on these cells, perhaps making for a brighter Tri-Cree blade. On the other, there's the possibility of discharging below the safe minimum voltage, damaging the cells. Ugh~

[ddr]

Radio Shack's back in business and stocking Lithium Ion rechargeables in different sizes. The person working the shop when I came in didn't really know anything about lithium ions (pointing me to those regular 1.5v "lithium" batteries), but then made mention of a section of batteries that were popular with Vapers, and surprise, a whole selection of 14500, 18650, and lots of other size rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. The one by me only carries 14500s in a pack with a charger, but that set is also currently on clearance, so you might score yourself a nice deal.

There is a chain of stores here in AZ and I think other states called Batteries Plus.  They stock all kinds of batteries and they carry the 14500.  That's were I always go to get rechargeable batteries because you can see what you are getting at the time of the sale.

 

[JEStucker]

There is a chain of stores here in AZ and I think other states called Batteries Plus.  They stock all kinds of batteries and they carry the 14500.  That's were I always go to get rechargeable batteries because you can see what you are getting at the time of the sale.

 

I checked Batteries and Bulbs (chain store that just opened) as well as a nearby Batteries Plus, they have 14500's, but in their brands, however the Batteries and Bulbs variant was a 600mAh, and the Batteries Plus was a 450mAh, I didn't buy either one because I didn't want another repeat of the Radio Shack incident.

It all boils down to "If you want what's best for your saber, probably ought to buy them from the folks that built it."  I've just got to get the budget worked out to get saber parts, computer parts (I hate this POS laptop I'm using, but at least it works... somewhat,) keep the bills paid, and start paying for my health insurance that's supposed to go into effect in two weeks...

[Antron007]

I have a question that pertains to batteries and recharge ports. When US does a recharge port is it the same setup as normal with the 2 Trustfire AA sized batteries just with the port added or do they use a different batter setup? I'm eventually going to add a port to my saber and I want to know if I'm going to need to change batteries. Thanks in advance. MTFBWYA

[Racona Nova]

It's the same Li-Ion setup for Recharge Port and non-Recharge Port sabers, so it's not necessary to change the battery setup. Actually, the Recharge Port setup is meant to be used with the Li-Ion setup ONLY!

[Antron007]

It's the same Li-Ion setup for Recharge Port and non-Recharge Port sabers, so it's not necessary to change the battery setup. Actually, the Recharge Port setup is meant to be used with the Li-Ion setup ONLY!

Thanks Racona Nova. That's a big help. Point to you.

[eerockk]

Just as an announcement: My last set of working 14500s have expired, and no longer work. Yes, my unmodified Ultras are currently dark. The way I see it, I got three years' worth of constant charging, getting my butt schooled by Darth Nonymous in geared combat, and every video review I've ever done, and each cell is under $5 before shipping. That is unbeatable, man. Placing an order soon here for a restock, and then it's time to play again.

[Antron007]

Thanks for the life span report eerockk.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

[JEStucker]

Update: Finally got my battery issue resolved.  UltraSabers came to Planet Comicon and I was able to purchase new trustfires and a new charger from their booth... did this the first day of the con, so I had functioning sabers the next two days!

[MARIO9565]

hey, iv been looking at batteries on amazon, what are the most powerful batteries i can buy with ought compromising the saber or my life. iv seen 14500 batteries that cap out at 3000 mah

[Kouri]

hey, iv been looking at batteries on amazon, what are the most powerful batteries i can buy with ought compromising the saber or my life. iv seen 14500 batteries that cap out at 3000 mah

Random chinese batteries with false ratings - don't waste your time or money. 14500 cells cap out around 800mAh, some brands give a more optimistic 900mAh label, but they still usually measure ~750-800. You're not getting more capacity without moving up to a larger cell.

[MARIO9565]

so i have to get 14500 li-ion cells? i spent a bit of time watching youtube vids and seeing people test them and the highest iv seen that were legit were trustfire 1200 mah